18 August 2016

Govt can’t take credit for Olympics captioning

The Ministers of Broadcasting and Disability Issues need to publically acknowledge who is really funding captioning for the Rio Olympic Games, the Green Party said today.

The $200,000 needed for Olympics captioning was underwritten and is being fundraised for by the National Foundation for the Deaf, because the Government refuses to regulate for captions. So it is highly inappropriate that the National Governmentappeared to take credit for it last week.

“Amy Adams and Nicky Wagner need to acknowledge the work that the National Foundation for the Deaf is having to do to ensure captioning access to the Olympics,” Green Party disability issues spokesperson Mojo Mathers said.

“The National Government refuses to regulate for captioning, so a major disability organisation has stepped up to ensure access for deaf and hard-of-hearing New Zealanders to an iconic sporting event.

“It shouldn’t be up to the National Foundation for the Deaf to rely upon $3 text donations and its reserve funding to get captioning for a major event like the Olympics in the first place.

“For the National Government to then indirectly claim credit for that work is particularly galling.

“It’s time for the Government to take captioning seriously and to improve access for the hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders who need it.

“Deaf and hard-of-hearing people should not have to be fighting for something as essential as captioning in this day and age,” Ms Mathers said.

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